Remembrance
by Jezrana
Summary: My first fic! Yippee! Well, it's a Sirius fic. A mushy one. Basically, the thoughts and memories of Sirius and the woman he loved, set after his escape from Azkaban.
1. Default Chapter

Author's Note: This is my first Harry Potter fic, so reviews would be appreciated. The plot...well...I'm no good at plot summaries, so just read it and you'll find out, won't you?  
  
  
  
Remembrance  
  
Chapter 1 Time: During Book 3  
  
Twelve years.  
  
It seemed as if it had been so much longer than that. The pain and loneliness had become so familiar she had difficulty remembering how it felt before. How it felt to wake up with her head resting on a pillow that was not soaked with tears.  
  
She had dreamed about him again last night.  
  
Sighing softly, she rose and went through the familiar morning routine. Got dressed. Made tea. Almost went to wake Isadora up before remembering that she was visiting Celina.  
  
While she was eating breakfast, Gale came in through the window, dropped a small pile of letters on the table, and nipped at her ear playfully. She absentmindedly reached into her pocket for an owl treat while she glanced at the mail. Letter from Izzie and Cel, some Ministry Stuff, the newspaper.  
  
It was the picture on the front page of The Daily Prophet that arrested her attention. She stared at the man in the picture, at his thin, white face and shadowed eyes. Intrigued, she picked the paper up and read the headline. A moment later, she cried out and dropped it.  
  
It couldn't be him.it just couldn't.hesitantly, she lifted the paper again, studying the picture carefully, gazing deeply into those dark eyes. Letting it fall to the table once more, she let her head sink into her hands as she sobbed uncontrollably.  
  
........................................................................  
  
Time: When the Marauders are at Hogwarts...sometime in the 70s I think...  
  
"Hey, Merlin, is that book permanently attached to your hand? Or do you just keep it in front of your face all the time so we won't see how ugly you are?"  
  
Alexandra Merlin lowered her book and stared icily at the boys in front of her. "Actually Snape, it's so I don't have to look at you." Her voice was calm, but she was trying not to get nervous. There were five of them, all Slytherin sixth years. Severus Snape grinned nastily. "Fifth years shouldn't talk like that.especially skinny fifth year Ravenclaw girls with no friends." Her eyebrows went up. "Was that a threat?" She laughed derisively. "I'm terrified."  
  
She lowered her head and continued reading. Then, the book was plucked from her hand by a tall boy with pale blonde hair. Alexandra's eyes narrowed in annoyance. "Give that back, Malfoy." He laughed. "No, I don't think I will. Hey, Goyle, catch!" He tossed the book towards another Slytherin, but it was intercepted in midair.  
  
A tall, handsome boy with dark hair and eyes stepped forward, holding Alexandra's book. "I believe this young lady asked for her book back, Malfoy." Mischief sparkled in his brown eyes, and he winked at Alexandra as he tossed the book back to her. Lucius Malfoy glared at him. "Keep out of this, Black. It's none of your business." Alexandra rose to her feet. "I appreciate your help, Sirius Black, but I can fight my own battles."  
  
Sirius looked her over. She was small, delicate looking, but her face was hard with anger. He couldn't help noticing that is was a rather pretty face, with large, dark blue eyes and brown hair. "Maybe you can," he said, grinning. "but five against one isn't very fair." She returned the smile. "Five against two isn't much better." "Well, we'll just have to even things up, won't we?" Three boys had come up. One had messy dark hair and glasses, and was grinning as widely as Sirius, another had golden brown hair and a serious expression, and the third hung slightly behind the others but was gripping his wand and trying to look brave. "Not having fun without us, are you, Padfoot?" the one with glasses said cheerfully.  
  
The Slytherins glared at the boys. "Should've known you lot would show up.you Gryffindor rats always travel in packs." Malfoy sneered. "Look who's talking." Alexandra and Sirius said at the same time. The situation might have turned ugly, but Professor McGonagall made a well- timed appearance. "Whatever you lot are thinking of doing, you'd better think again. Neither of your houses can afford to lose any more points, after your antics last week." With one more dirty look at the Gryffindor boys, the Slytherins stalked off.  
  
Alexandra turned to Sirius's friends. "Thanks.for a minute I thought I was actually going to have to fight them." The boy with glasses raised his eyebrows. "You sounded pretty confident just before we came over." "Don't you know a bluff when you hear one, Potter? They would have flattened me! I'm glad you showed up." "Excuse me, but I don't think we've met you." the serious looking boy began. "No, but is there anyone at Hogwarts who doesn't know who you four are, Lupin?" She turned to the fourth boy and thought for a minute. "Peter, right?" He nodded. "Well, I know who all of you are, so let me introduce myself." She held out her hand. "Alexandra Merlin." Sirius took her hand, smiling. "Nice to meet you." 


	2. Chapter Two! Tremble before my creative ...

A.N. Chapter 2! Thanks to the people who reviewed! Oh, and something I forgot:  
  
Disclaimer: Yes, I own Sirius!! No, no I don't-I don't own any of the Marauders (sniffle). I just invited them over to play for a while. I'll bring them back and they'll still be in fairly good condition.  
  
However, all new characters (Alexandra and others later) are mine and I'm very possessive of my fanfic characters! Well, go on, read!  
  
Chapter Two (I'm soooooo creative, aren't I?)  
  
Time: Present  
  
Rain and wind assailed the small beach, soaking him to the bone and obscuring his vision. He didn't care. He reveled in the presence of the storm, tilting his head back and letting the rain cascade over his face. He was free.  
  
As darkness fell, he found a secluded cave to spend the night in and managed to build a fire out of driftwood. As he reached forward to put more wood on the fire, the flickering light glinted off a tarnished silver ring on his left hand. He paused, studying the ring. It was plain except for two interlocking letters, an "S" and an "A".  
  
Memories tugged at him, memories he'd learned to bury in the deepest part of his mind. In the hell he'd just escaped from, those memories had brought him nothing but pain. But now...now he could allow himself to remember, and to hope. If he was successful in clearing his name, what was to stop him from finding her, making up for all the years they'd lost? Closing his eyes, he remembered...  
  
........................................................................  
  
Time: Past  
  
The next morning, Sirius studied the Ravenclaw table, looking for Alexandra. Finding her, he watched her for several minutes, watching the way her eyes lit up when she smiled, the way her slender hands pushed her long, thick hair behind her ear, the way...  
  
As if feeling his eyes on her, Alexandra glanced up. Their eyes met, and Sirius grinned at her. She blushed, which just made her prettier, and lowered her eyes quickly, but then she looked up again and shyly returned his smile.  
  
"...right, Sirius? Sirius?" Remus poked his friend in the arm. Turning, he tried to see what Sirius was staring at, just in time to see Alexandra blush and smile. Remus grinned. "Looks like someone's got a crush." he said teasingly. Sirius turned red, muttered something unintelligible, and turned his full attention to his breakfast.  
  
Sirius couldn't explain why Alexandra interested him so much. She didn't seem like his type-she was shy, quiet, and reading almost every time he saw her. She seemed like the kind of girl who'd fit better with Remus or Peter, not the biggest troublemaker in the school. But there was more to Alexandra than that. She had spirit, even if she wasn't as outgoing as him. She didn't go looking for trouble, but he didn't think she'd run from it. And he was willing to bet there were other sides to her he hadn't seen yet. She was intriguing, to say the least. A puzzle he wanted to figure out.  
  
He turned back to his friends' conversation.  
  
"So what are we doing tonight?" Peter asked. "It's a full moon, isn't it?"  
  
Remus nodded. "Can you guys meet me in the shack around midnight?"  
  
James grinned. "We'll be there, Moony."  
  
Rather than shun their friend when they discovered he was a werewolf, Sirius, James, and Peter had turned Remus's monthly transformations into something he almost looked forward to. After months of work, they had finally become Animagi, and now each full moon meant a new adventure for them.  
  
That night, under James's invisibility cloak, they snuck out of the castle and through the secret passage that led to the shack that had been built for Remus to conceal himself in. Then they headed for the Forbidden Forest. During their monthly adventures, the boys had learned things about the castle and its grounds that even Dumbledore probably didn't know. But the forest was still uncharted, excitingly dangerous territory.  
  
Moving ahead of his friends, Sirius/Padfoot caught sight of something through the trees. He edged forward cautiously until he could see it clearly. Then he stood still in shock.  
  
Alexandra was standing in a clearing, stroking the mane of a fully grown unicorn. Light from the full moon fell through the trees, shining on Alexandra's hair and glittering off the unicorn's horn. It was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. Just then, a harsh growl interrupted his thoughts. The werewolf that was Remus/Moony had rushed past James/Prongs and was charging toward Alexandra.  
  
With a shrill whinny of fear, the unicorn ran. Alexandra, looking terrified, stumbled backwards and fell, but then she reached into her robes and pulled out her wand, apparently intending to defend herself. She didn't know the werewolf was Remus. She could hurt him, maybe even kill him-if he didn't kill her first. Without thinking, Padfoot threw himself at the werewolf and knocked his friend out of the path of Alexandra's spell.  
  
Prongs was at his side in a moment. Together, they forced Moony back and pinned him against a thick cluster of trees. Sirius transformed back into a human.  
  
"Keep him here." He said to Prongs breathlessly, then rushed back to where Alexandra was.  
  
"Are you alright?" he asked, reaching down to help her up. She took his hand. The fear on her face had been replaced by puzzlement. "Sirius? What's going on?"  
  
He looked at her, then over his shoulder at Moony and Prongs, and then back at her. "I'm not going to get out of this without a damn good explanation, am I?"  
  
Her dark blue eyes regarded him seriously. "Start explaining."  
  
While Prongs and Peter/Wormtail returned to the shack with Moony, Sirius walked back to the castle under the invisibility cloak with Alexandra, explaining everything to her.  
  
"Do you have any idea how many rules you've broken?" she demanded after he was finished.  
  
"I'd say a few more than you have." he retorted.  
  
"Me? I'm not the unregistered Animagus who runs around with a werewolf-"  
  
"-No, you're just hanging around in the Forbidden Forest after midnight. If anyone else finds out about tonight, you'd be in almost as much trouble as we would. So if you don't tell anyone about us, we wont tell anyone about you."  
  
"But I wasn't doing anything that would hurt anyone. Look, Sirius, I know Remus is a kind, gentle person, but as a werewolf-if you and James hadn't stopped him-what if you come across someone else some night and you can't stop him in time?"  
  
"We wouldn't let that happen. We only go places where there won't be any people-or at least there shouldn't be."  
  
"Sirius-"  
  
"Alexandra," he turned, looked straight into her eyes. "Do you want Remus to get expelled? Do you want Dumbledore to get fired for letting a werewolf come to school here?"  
  
"No, but I don't want anyone to get hurt, either."  
  
"No one will." He said reassuringly. "Trust me."  
  
They had reached the entrance to the Ravenclaw tower. Sirius took her hand one more time. "Think about it. I'll find you tomorrow and we'll talk." Impulsively, he leaned down and kissed her on the cheek. "I'm really glad you didn't get hurt. 'Night."  
  
He ran off toward the Gryffindor tower, leaving Alexandra blushing furiously, with one hand raised to her cheek. 


	3. Chapter Three! Never saw that coming, di...

A.N.-Fair Warning: This chapter is Sappy Romantic Mush. And Happy Fluffy Mush on top of that. A hint or two of angst, but mostly mush.  
  
Chapter Three!!  
  
Time: Present  
  
Alexandra had once thought the pain she lived with day by day couldn't have been any worse. She'd been wrong. Since she'd learned of Sirius's escape, two more tiny slivers of pain had made their way into her heart.  
  
Fear. Fear that he'd be caught again, or worse, that she'd been wrong all these years and he really was a murderous traitor. No-she'd never allowed herself to believe that. She couldn't start now. Then there was the hope. The hope she'd never allowed herself to have while he was in Azkaban. The fragile, foolish hope that somehow he'd prove his innocence, and they'd be together again.  
  
Fear, and hope. She wasn't sure which was more dangerous.  
  
On top of everything else, school had started again. Isadora was back at Hogwarts.and the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher was none other than Remus J. Lupin. Alexandra wanted desperately to contact him, talk to him.but how could she? They'd barely spoken in twelve years, and the last real conversation they'd had had ended in angry, hurtful words. Ironically, their friendship had fallen apart just when they'd needed each other most.  
  
No. She wasn't going to think about that night. She'd think about anything but that. Anything...  
  
........................................................................  
  
The next day was Saturday. Sirius woke up earlier than he usually did on weekends. He wanted to find Alexandra and talk to her. After talking to several Ravenclaws, he learned that she would probably be in the library. He found her there, bent over a large book and occasionally scribbling something in a notebook. She looked up and smiled at him.  
  
"Hey." He said, feeling uncharacteristically shy all of a sudden. "I wanted to make sure you were okay-"  
  
"And ask me whether or not I'm going to tell anyone about what happened, right?" He nodded, and she sighed. "I still think that what you're doing is foolish and dangerous, Sirius. But you've told me a very important secret, and I won't betray your trust."  
  
Their eyes met as she said this. A messy tangle of emotions rose inside Sirius-gratitude, admiration, and something he couldn't find a name for. He smiled and tried to think of something to say. "Thanks. It means a lot to know I can trust you."  
  
Alexandra toyed with her pencil, looking as awkward as he felt. "Is Remus alright?" she asked after a moment. "I've heard lycanthrope transformations are very painful."  
  
Sirius sat down beside her. "He's fine. So what are you doing?"  
  
A flicker of a small crossed her face. "Researching lycanthropy. I found some interesting stuff.did you know a team of wizards is currently working to develop a potion that could make transformations less painful and allow the person to keep control of themselves when they change?"  
  
"Really? That's great!"  
  
She nodded enthusiastically. "It could be the first step toward a cure." Alexandra glanced over at Sirius and saw him regarding her intently. "What's wrong?"  
  
"Nothing...it's just, we only met a few days ago and you're showing all this concern for Remus. Most people I know wouldn't want anything to do with him if they knew what you know."  
  
"I'm not most people." She set her notebook aside. "And as for us having just met, there's a simple enough solution to that. Tell me about yourself."  
  
They stayed in the library until lunchtime, talking about anything, just getting to know each other. They talked about their families. Alexandra was from an old, influential, and very rich wizard family-she could trace her ancestors back to Merlin of Britain, a wizard so famous even Muggles grew up knowing his name. She had two siblings-a brother who had already graduated from Hogwarts and a sister who would be starting next year. Her mother had died soon after the youngest sister was born-the birth had been difficult and the baby had almost died as well. Sirius was the only child of a relatively young family-his grandparents had been Muggle-born, but his family was also fairly wealthy.  
  
She asked him what kind of books he read, and Sirius confessed, a bit awkwardly, that he didn't read much. Alexandra didn't seem to think less of him for that. She smiled, said that maybe he'd just been reading the wrong things, and suggested some books she thought he might like. He made a mental note to read some of them as soon as possible so he could talk to her about them. Then he asked what music she listened to, and they discovered they both had a passion for Muggle rock and roll. They compared groups and found that they were both fans of Led Zeppelin, The Who, and The Doors.  
  
Leaving the library, they continued their conversation all the way down to the Great Hall. Sirius was so engaged in talking to her that he almost sat down at the Ravenclaw table without realizing it. James and Remus noticed, and teased him mercilessly throughout the meal.  
  
........................................................................  
  
They saw each other a lot in the next few days. Alexandra easily made friends with the other Marauders and Lily, a pretty fifth year Gryffindor who James was hopelessly in love with. Lily and Alexandra had similar personalities, but Lily was more confident and outgoing than the notoriously shy Alexandra. In a way, she took the younger girl under her wing.  
  
Next to Sirius, Alexandra got along best with Remus, who was almost as quiet as her and easily the smartest of the group. She liked James, who blushingly asked her if Lily ever said anything about him when the girls were alone. She and Peter never had much to say to each other, perhaps because they were both so timid, but they got along alright.  
  
Sirius, though, was definitely her favorite. They would spend hours in the library or walking together outside, talking about anything and everything. Sirius was a naturally open person, and whatever made Alexandra afraid to talk to other people never seemed to matter with him. In a few days, they new each other as well as if they'd been friends for years. It wasn't just friendship either. Sirius hadn't kissed her since that first night, but they touched often and the attraction between them was obvious. As for kissing and...other things, Sirius was in no hurry. He felt like he could spend the rest of his life with Alexandra and still not get tired of her company. If anything was going to happen between them, it would happen in its own time.  
  
A.N.-Sappy goodness, eh? Got a bit carried away with all the Sirius falling in love business. ^_^  
  
Okay, okay, I promise the next chapter won't be so mushy. In fact, there's gonna be EVIL in it! How 'bout that? Stick around-voluntarily--otherwise I'll have to break out the duct tape. And we don't want that, do we? 


	4. Chapter Four!

A.N.--*sigh* Alright, I know I promised you EVIL, but.  
  
The EVIL Plot Ideas got attacked by the Romantic Mush Plot Ideas, who apparently aren't ready to give up control of the story yet. As a result, all the EVIL Plot Ideas have been hospitalized, and the Romantic Mush Plot Ideas are once again running the show. I'll get the EVIL in here eventually.just not yet.  
  
Chapter Four  
  
Sirius entered the Great Hall one morning to find an eerie quiet settled over the students. Everyone was talking in hushed voices, and he couldn't see anyone smiling. Even on a Monday, that was definitely not right. Remus, James, Peter, and Lily were clustered together in their usual spot at the Gryffindor table. Sirius hurried over to join them.  
  
"Hey guys, what's going on?" he asked as he reached them. "Did exams get rescheduled for this week or something?"  
  
Lily glanced up, looked at him incredulously. "You haven't heard?"  
  
"Heard what? What happened? Who died?" He was still half joking, and totally unprepared for the answer he got.  
  
"Alexandra's father."  
  
"What?!" Sirius turned and stared at Remus. His friend hadn't looked up as he spoke, he was staring at the table, tracing meaningless patterns on the wood with his slender fingers. His face was completely, deadly serious. He glanced up now, meeting his friend's eyes.  
  
"Alexandra's father is dead, Sirius. Murdered, if what I've heard is accurate."  
  
Sirius's head was spinning. Part of his mind was screaming that this couldn't have happened, but the blunt sincerity in Remus's gray eyes made disbelief impossible. Besides, Moony would never joke about something like this.At that moment, Dumbledore stood and asked for the students' attention.  
  
"Several of the faculty and most of the parents I've spoken to so far don't think I should tell you what I'm about to. They tell me you are too young to understand or cope with this kind of tragedy. I think you deserve more credit than that-in my experience, children sometimes understand tragedy better than adults. Besides, there already seem to be several variations of the truth being told, so I feel I should tell you all now.  
  
For some time, the Ministry of Magic has been aware of a wizard who calls himself Voldemort. This Voldemort has certain.ideas about how wizards should use their powers, as well as who should be allowed to study wizardry in the first place. We suspected he might turn to violence, but hoped we were wrong.our hope has now been proven vain.  
  
Several nights ago Nicodemus Merlin, a respectable wizard and an old friend of mine, was murdered. Many, including myself, believe his death was the work of Voldemort.  
  
Many of you already know that his daughter, Alexandra, is a student here. I can't ask you not to discuss this incident, but I do ask that you refrain from mentioning it around Alexandra. She will have more than enough grief to deal with already."  
  
Before Dumbledore had finished, Sirius was already searching the Ravenclaw table with his eyes. Alexandra wasn't there. Without saying a word to his friends, he stood and left the room.  
  
"Sirius-" Remus and James caught up with him on the stairs. "Sirius, you might just make it worse, don't-"  
  
"I have to talk to her, James. If something like this happened to Lily you'd be doing just the same, so don't bother trying to stop me." They had reached the Ravenclaw tower now, and Remus stepped in front of the portrait that marked the entrance.  
  
"Sirius, use your head, for God's sake. Even if anything you could say or do would possibly help, she's in the tower and none of us knows the password. Let's just go back to breakfast, and you can talk to Alexandra once she's had a chance to deal with this."  
  
At that moment, the portrait entrance swung open and Alexandra and Professor Flitwick came out. Flitwick looked like he was about to tell them to go away, but Alexandra spoke before he could.  
  
"It's alright, Professor, I wanted to leave the dormitory so I could find Sirius." She gave the Professor a smile-a trembling, teary-eyed smile, but a smile nonetheless. "Can you give us some time alone? I'll some by Professor Dumbledore's office later."  
  
"If you're sure you'll be alright, my dear-" She nodded, and Flitwick patted her hand sympathetically and walked off. Alexandra turned to Sirius. She was obviously on the verge of tears, but she smiled at him as well.  
  
"Hey." Sirius returned the smile-or tried to anyway, and then said, weakly, "How-how are you feeling?" Instantly he wanted to bang his head against the wall, and called himself all kind of insulting things under his breath. In a history of jerky comments and bad jokes, that had to be the single stupidest thing he had ever said. "I mean-are you alright?" Damn it, that was just as bad!  
  
Alexandra stood there and watched him make an ass of himself, a tiny hint of a real smile playing about her lips. Suddenly she almost laughed, and ended up bursting into tears. Sirius was at her side in a minute, wrapping his arms around her. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry-I'm such and idiot-"  
  
She sighed and nestled her head against his shoulder, still crying. "It's alright, it's not your fault. Anything would make me cry right now."  
  
Sirius glanced over his shoulder. Remus was already dragging James, who would have preferred to stay and watch the melodrama, back down the stairs. And as much as he wanted to just stand still and let Alexandra cry into his shoulder, they should go somewhere else, too. Picking her up in his arms, Sirius carried her to the empty library and settled them both into a comfortable spot on a window seat. The seat was big enough for both of them, but Alexandra curled up next to Sirius until she was practically in his lap.  
  
"I got you all wet." She murmured after crying for a few more minutes. "Sorry."  
  
"S'ok." Sirius gently rubbed one hand against her back, giving with his body the comfort he seemed unable to give with words. A sudden thought occurred to him, and he lifted his head to look down at her. "Your little sister.is she--?"  
  
"She's okay. Well, not okay, but.you know what I mean. She's not hurt. She was visiting our brother in Wales."  
  
"That's good." Sirius lowered his head again, resting his cheek on her soft hair. "Ally."  
  
"Ally?" She raised her head, smiling slightly. "No one's ever called me that before. Even to my family I was always Alexandra."  
  
"Oh. Well."  
  
She answered his question before he could ask it. "I like it."  
  
Their eyes met, and without really thinking Sirius bent down and kissed her, really kissed her for the first time. Her mouth was softer and sweeter than he could ever have fantasized. They moved slightly against each other as the kiss deepened, both shifting their bodies until they seemed to fit perfectly. Sirius only broke the kiss when it got hard to breathe, and their mouths came together again almost immediately.  
  
Finally Ally lowered her head and nuzzled against his neck gently. "Weren't you about to tell me something?"  
  
"Hmm? Oh, yeah." Lifting her chin with his hand, Sirius looked into her eyes. "I can't think of anything that I could say that would help you feel better about this-most things I can think of would probably make it worse.but if you need anything, I'll be here for you. And if you want to talk, I'll just listen and not say anything stupid."  
  
She actually laughed. "Go ahead, say something stupid. It might cheer me up."  
  
Sirius grinned, responding to her challenge. "Alright, you asked for it." He looked her straight in the eye. "I love you."  
  
Alexandra's eyes widened in surprise. For a moment, she just stared at him. Then, in a heartbeat, she was hugging him so tightly he couldn't breathe.  
  
"Oh, Sirius." She raised her head and kissed him. "You're an idiot." Another kiss. "And a troublemaker." Another kiss. "And you're a teacher's worst nightmare and I want to be a teacher and there's all sorts of reasons you're the wrong person for me to be with." One more kiss, so deep and passionate it made his head spin-"And I love you, too."  
  
A.N.-Don't you look at me that way! It's all his fault! (points to Sirius) Every time I try to write something non-mushy, he pops up in my head all cute and romantic.If he'd just behave himself, we could make some progress here! 


	5. Chapter Five!

A.N.—Ah, the joy of feedback. Good to know I'm not the only one who likes this story…Not that no one else liking it would stop me from posting it… ^- ^  
  
Hmm, let's see…some evil in this chapter, more soon. And to the person who's name I can't remember who asked why I put this under Sirius/Remus…and to any Lupinites (my word for Remus fans) who might be getting bored with all the Sirius Mush…quite simply, there will be Moony Mush too! ^_~ And soon…I hope…  
  
Chapter Five  
  
During the next few days, they saw each other as often as possible. Ally would be leaving soon for her father's funeral and, since it was already May, she might not be returning before the end of the school year. Of course, Sirius was planning to write to her constantly over the summer, but it wouldn't be the same as being with her.  
  
On the day Ally was leaving, the Marauders and Lily walked down to the entrance hall with her. They had been trying to work out a plan to spend part of the summer together,  
  
and it was proving harder than they thought. Remus, James, and Peter all had houses too small to accommodate an extra five teenagers. Lily had a big enough house, but, being Muggle-born, she also had a stuck-up older sister who considered anything vaguely magical "abnormal and wrong".  
  
"What about you, Padfoot?" James asked as they descended the stairs.  
  
"I'll probably be spending at least one month of the summer grounded, but I guess I could talk to my parents."  
  
"Grounded? What'd you do now?"  
  
Sirius made a face. "Nothing!"  
  
"Yet." Peter added. "Give him about a week at home with no Slytherins to fight with, Prongs."  
  
"Oh, yes, of course…how about you, Ally?"  
  
"Maybe. My brother Nick is my legal guardian now, and we don't know if he's going to move into our father's house or Celina and I are going to move in with him. And whatever happens, it'll take us a while to get settled." A slight smile crossed her face. "If we did get together at my house, he'd probably drop dead from shock. I've never had many friends before."  
  
Lily threw a sisterly arm across Ally's shoulders. "Well, now you've got the best friends at Hogwarts."  
  
"Just Hogwarts?" Sirius asked, sounding offended but with a mischievous light in his eyes.  
  
Ally hugged him. "The best friends anywhere, and you know it. You just want your ego stroked.  
  
"_Just_ my ego?" he continued in a suggestive tone, pulling her close. She pushed him away playfully.  
  
"Behave yourself. We're in public."  
  
Remus grinned. "Yeah, Sirius, as cute as it is, watching you two cuddle borders on sickening."  
  
They had reached the bottom of the stairs by this time. A young man with features similar to Alexandra's stood talking to Dumbledore. Her trunk had already been brought down.  
  
"That's my brother—time for me to go." Ally hugged them all, kissed Sirius on the mouth and everyone else on the cheek. "See you this summer."  
  
………………………………………………………………………………………………  
  
They didn't get together that summer. In fact, they ended up barely being allowed to leave their houses. That summer, Voldemort began his reign of terror. Alexandra's father had been one of his first victims, but many more soon followed. Their parents (and Ally's brother) tried to shield them from the news and stories that seemed to grow more terrible with every day, but they were all too aware of what was happening in their world.  
  
Voldemort seemed to have a particular hatred for Muggle-born wizards, which drove James crazy with worry for Lilly, but he would kill anyone who opposed him, especially anyone who could be a potential threat. Alexandra believed this was why her father, a descendant of one of the most powerful wizards ever, had been killed, but said nothing to her brother or sister on the subject. The only people she shared that suspicion with were her friends. They had begun writing to each other every week, so that everyone knew that everyone else was alright. It calmed their fears somewhat, and also brought them closer together. That terrible summer, the group forged a bond that would be unbreakable…or so they thought.  
  
They were all relieved when school started again. There had been talk of closing Hogwarts temporarily due to the state of crisis the wizarding world was in. However, Dumbledore had been quoted in The Daily Prophet stating that as long as the castle was standing, he would be there and anyone who wanted to learn would be welcome there as well.  
  
A.N.—I like having my ego stroked as well! (hint hint ^_~) 


	6. Chapter Six! Finally!

A.N.—The fates have conspired to keep me from posting this chapter…first writer's block, then school, the my internet was down for a week. (sigh) Oh well, it's up now. Enjoy!  
  
Chapter Six  
  
They were all excited when September came, even Sirius. After not seeing each other all summer, they couldn't wait to get together again. Besides that, the Marauders and Lily were in their seventh year (James and Lily had been named Head Boy and Girl, to the surprise of no one), and Ally's sister, Celina, was coming to Hogwarts for the first time.  
  
Sirius was making his way through the Hogwarts Express, looking for his friends, when he bumped into Remus, who was coming the other way.  
  
"There you are." Remus said. "Ally and her sister are three compartments down on the left. Have you seen James, Lily, or Peter?"  
  
"Nope. Want me to help you look for 'em?"  
  
"Nah, you go get settled. I'll find them."  
  
Just as Sirius was about to open the compartment door, it was opened for him. A skinny girl of about eleven stood in the doorway, regarding him with green eyes that looked like they had seen far too much for someone so young. She had the same delicate bone structure as Alexandra, but, maybe because she was so thin, her features seemed sharp rather than graceful.  
  
"Which one are you?" she asked.  
  
He smiled slightly. "I'm Sirius. You must be Celina."  
  
"Oh—you're the one she talks about all the time."  
  
Ally walked to the door and placed a hand on her sister's shoulder. "Cel, if I knew you were going to interrogate all my friends before letting them in, I would have made you find your own compartment."  
  
Celina made a face at her and ducked back to her seat. "The other one was cuter."  
  
"I'll forgive the foolishness of that statement because you're so young." Turning to Sirius, Ally gave him a quick, discreet kiss. Sirius couldn't help noticing that even when they kissed, Celina watched them intently.  
  
"'The other one?'" he asked. "You mean Remus?" Celina blushed and wouldn't answer.  
  
………………………………………………………………………………………………  
  
"So what do you think of her?" Sirius asked as he sat down at the Gryffindor table.  
  
"Celina?" Lily replied. "She seems like a nice kid."  
  
"I don't know...to be honest, she kinda gave me the creeps. You know, the way she's always watching you no matter what you're doing?"  
  
James nodded. "I know what you mean, but give her a break. If you never had a mother and your father was murdered when you were ten, you'd be creepy too."  
  
"It's more than that." Remus said quietly. "She, well...she knows too much. If she wasn't so small, I'd never guess she was eleven. She's seen and knows things a kid her age just shouldn't. Her father's death is part of it, yes, but something tells me that's not the only thing."  
  
Peter called everyone's attention back to the Sorting Ceremony. "Hey guys, Cel's about to get Sorted."  
  
"Merlin, Celina."  
  
A slight murmur filled the room. As the descendents of the most famous wizard ever, Ally and Cel both had quite a bit of notoriety. Calmly, as if she couldn't hear the whispers swelling around her, Celina walked to the front of the hall and sat on the stool. The Sorting Hat sat silently on her head longer than it had for any other student that night—almost as if it was debating where to put this unusual girl. Finally, it voiced its decision.  
  
"SLYTHERIN!"  
  
A.N.—DUM DUM DUUUUM!!!  
  
Sorry, this was supposed to be longer but I couldn't resist ending it right there. I know. I'm evil. Mwa ha ha!  
  
Oh, and you're not delusional, I did start with Alexandra as a fourth year and everyone else as a fifth year, but I decided to bump them all up a year.  
  
Next chapter will be up quicker than this one was, I promise! 


	7. Chapter Seven! Hooray!

A.N.—This is a little present-time interlude, kinda sweet, kinda angsty.  
  
By the way, if anyone's wondering, Celina is just pronounced "Selena" but I felt like spelling it differently.  
  
Chapter Seven  
  
Just before Christmas, Alexandra finally worked up the nerve to contact Remus. When his face appeared in the fireplace, she was amazed at how old he looked. If her memories served her correctly, he was only thirty-five, yet he looked at least forty. But then, time and hardship had taken their toll on her as well.  
  
She managed to smile at him. "Hello, Remus. You're looking well."  
  
"Still haven't learned how to lie convincingly, have you, Ally?" He gave her a shy, self-deprecating smile, making him look for a moment just like the insecure teenager they had all been so fond of. "How are you?"  
  
She shrugged gently. "As well as I've ever been in the last twelve years. What about you? You're Isadora's favorite teacher, you know. She says you're 'cool'."  
  
Remus blushed. "She's a wonderful student. A bit of a troublemaker, though."  
  
"You can thank Celina for that, not me."  
  
He chuckled. "How is Cel, anyway?"  
  
"Cel is..." Ally searched for an appropriate adjective. "Well, she's Cel. You haven't seen her in what...three years? She got a snake tattooed across her entire left arm on her last birthday. Owns a flat in London and sings in nightclubs. She's a bad influence on Izzie, so of course Izzie adores her."  
  
They talked for a few minutes about trivial matters. They both avoided mentioning Sirius, for which Ally was glad. She hadn't contacted him after all these years just to fight again. Finally, she brought up the subject she had called him about.  
  
"Remus...what were you planning to do for Christmas this year?"  
  
He looked slightly uncomfortable and shrugged. "I thought I'd just stay at Hogwarts. No point in making a trip home just to celebrate Christmas by myself."  
  
Ally took a deep breath and decided to get this over with. "Come stay with us."  
  
Remus hadn't been expecting that. He looked up, surprised. "What?"  
  
"Come stay with us for Christmas. Three people don't come close to filling up this house and I know Celina and Isadora would both love it. And...well...I miss you, Remus. I miss your friendship. I know things can't ever be the way they were before, but I want to at least try to rebuild our friendship. Please, Remus."  
  
"Ally..." he shook his head, and for one moment she thought she saw tears in his eyes. "There's a full moon Christmas night."  
  
"Oh." That threw her off for a second. "Oh, Remus, on Christmas of all nights...I'm sorry." Then she smiled. "So? Celina and I both know how to make the Wolfsbane Potion, and Izzie doesn't have to find out. Our house is big enough to hide five werewolves in. We can spend the rest of the holidays together."  
  
He couldn't help but laugh. "You're not going to take no for an answer, are you?"  
  
"Merlins never concede defeat, Rem. Except maybe when you shut us up in oak trees. Come home on the train with Izzie, it'll be easiest that way."  
  
………………………………………………………………………………………………  
  
Remus felt distinctly out of place among the crowd of happy children and parents at King's Cross. Isadora dodged her way through the crowd with assurance, completely ignoring the odd looks her black cat and broomstick- shaped parcel were earning her, and Remus simply followed, hoping she knew where she was going.  
  
Suddenly, he heard a low, clear voice just behind his ear. "Rem?!"  
  
He turned and blinked in surprise. "Cel?"  
  
Celina was still small and slender, but the black boots she was wearing added about an inch to her height. Above that, she wore tight black leggings, a short black skirt, and a dark green silk blouse. Over everything was a black leather trenchcoat. She was wearing makeup—dark, almost black lipstick, green eyeshadow and too much mascara. Her black hair was longer than the last time he had seen her, falling over her shoulder in a long braid.  
  
He didn't remember her being so attractive. He didn't remember her being so unsettling either. Remus had always been fond of Cel—there had even been a time, before Lily and James' death, when he'd thought he loved her. But as he looked at her now, the first thought that came to mind was of a beautiful snake lazily coiled around a rock, waiting for its prey to come within reach.  
  
Then he looked into her eyes. They were lit up with an almost childlike joy. Then she was in his arms, hugging him tightly, and, as always, he wondered how he could think anything bad about her.  
  
"Remus!" There was joy and annoyance in her voice at the same time. "I told you to keep in touch!" She backed away, but kept hold of him, linking her hand through his arm. Checking to make sure Isadora was with them, she steered him towards the station entrance. "When we get home, you are going to tell me every detail of what you've been up to, and I don't care how boring you think it is. C'mon."  
  
Well, Remus thought as they walked, if nothing else, this Christmas would be more interesting than last year.  
  
A.N.—Promised you Remusy goodness, didn't I? And don't think I've forgotten our dear Sirius, I'll put plenty of him in the next chapter to make up for this one.  
  
Oh, and if you didn't get the oak tree thing, that's how Merlin died in the King Arthur legends. He got shut up in a tree by a sorceress. There's your tidbit of random knowledge for today. 


	8. Chapter Eight! Sorry it took so long!

A.N.—Hey, you can't use the duct tape on me! I'm the Author! I'm all- powerful! (Remembers that her all-powerfulness only applies to fanfic characters.) Eh...just kidding.  
  
I know, I know, I'm grossly guilty of Reader Neglect. Tell you what—you get real life to bug off for a month or so, I'll give you a new chapter every day. Or, if that's asking too much of you, just wait till school ends and I'll have way too much free time on my hands. ;)  
  
Now, where were we...  
  
Chapter Eight  
  
How long had he been hiding in the Forbidden Forest, pretending to be just another animal? He couldn't remember anymore. Long enough for winter to come...and he was no closer to his goal than when he first came here.  
  
He desperately wanted justice—and revenge, he could admit that much to himself—but he also wanted to avoid anyone else getting hurt. As long as the Weasley boy and Harry were here, at Hogwarts, he could watch them and the rat. But that would only last while the school year lasted. If he didn't find a good opportunity before June, he would have to make his move, regardless of the consequences. He couldn't let Harry's friend go home with a murderer still in his pocket.  
  
It was hard, hiding out here. The grounds, the school, the forest itself were full of bittersweet memories. The hardest pain came when he saw Harry or Remus walking across the grounds. He wanted to run to them, embrace them, speak to them just once even if he couldn't convince them of his innocence. And he tried not to think of the old days. But the memories came, whether he wanted them or not...  
  
………………………………………………………………………………………………  
  
Sirius was bored. And that was never, ever a good thing.  
  
He couldn't help being bored in class. He wasn't stupid—on the contrary, he was too smart for his own good. He understood things easily, and didn't have patients for students who needed something explained to them again and again. It was the same with Remus and James, but they dealt with boredom better than Sirius. So while Professor Binns re-stated the causes of the Third Goblin Rebellion in the early 1900s, Remus read a book on philosophy that was hidden inside his notebook, and James daydreamed about the upcoming Quidditch match, Sirius fidgeted and resisted the temptation to see if he could throw a pencil through Professor Binns' nose.  
  
He found himself thinking of the night of the Sorting Ceremony. He and his friends had managed to sneak off to the library after they were supposed to be in bed, and they had discussed Celina's placement in Slytherin. Ally had told them that she was a bit disappointed, but not surprised.  
  
"Can I trust you all with a secret?" she had asked.  
  
"Of course you can...you know you can trust us." Lily had said.  
  
Ally shook her head. She was sitting with her legs drawn up and her arms around her knees, making her look uncharacteristically young and vulnerable. "I don't know if I can trust anyone with this. No one outside my family knows."  
  
"Doesn't know what? Come on, you can tell us."  
  
She sighed. "Celina can talk to snakes. She's a Parselmouth. Like Slytherin—and Voldemort."  
  
None of them had been expecting that. After a moment, Peter had asked, "How do you know?"  
  
"She has this pet snake—she's had it since she was a little girl. Just came in from playing in the yard one day with it draped around her neck and asked if she could keep it. Of course, Dad was furious that she'd picked up a snake without knowing if it was dangerous or not, but Cel just looked up at him with the most innocent expression on her face and said: 'He wouldn't hurt me. He told me so.' Well, Dad tried to make her give the snake up, but she cried like he was taking away her favorite toy, and no matter how far away from the house we left it, it kept coming back. Eventually we looked it up, found out it wasn't poisonous, and after that Dad tolerated it as long as Cel kept it in a glass case."  
  
"Freaky." Sirius said. "I mean, about the snake coming back and all that stuff. But when I was a kid, I was convinced I could communicate with animals too. You don't think she's a Parselmouth just based on that?"  
  
"No...there's more to it than that. Celina would talk to the snake, but she wouldn't talk, really...she hissed to it. Even that might have been just a child's imagination, but it would hiss back and it sounded like they were having actual conversations. And then...she started knowing things without being told, and when we asked her how she knew, she said her snake told her. The night Dad died—Celina was visiting Nick, that's why she wasn't there when it happened—she woke Nick up in the middle of the night, hysterical, saying her snake had told her Dad was in danger. He told her to go back to sleep, but she cried and screamed at him until he called the house, just to calm her down by having Dad tell Celina he was alright. And he didn't get an answer, so he rushed over—and found Dad's body." She broke off, looking down to hide the tears in her eyes. Sirius hugged her tightly.  
  
"My God..." Remus whispered. "That story's enough to convince me. But you don't think--"  
  
"_No._" Ally said vehemently before he could finish. "Celina is not evil or anything like that. But—she is touched by darkness, and that's something I don't think she has any control over. She's my little sister, and I love her more than anything in the world—but to be honest, she frightens me sometimes. And I'm not just afraid of her—I'm afraid for her."  
  
"Why?" Peter asked.  
  
It was Lily who answered. "Voldemort's eliminating threats and looking for potential allies. It seems like Celina could be either—or both—of those." Ally nodded, confirming that that was her fear.  
  
Sirius was concerned, as were all his friends, but he didn't see what he could do for Celina or Alexandra—except offer comfort, even if comfort was only a temporary way to make it better. He squeezed Ally's shoulders and kissed the top of her head.  
  
"Well, we'll just have to take care of her. And if Voldy wants to touch her, he'll have to get through all six of us—right?"  
  
"Right." They all agreed instantly.  
  
Ally smiled and raised her head to kiss him. "Thank you. I feel better already." Suddenly she straightened. "What time is it?"  
  
James checked his watch. "One forty five."  
  
"One forty five in the morning?!"  
  
Sirius leaned close and whispered, "Morning, yes. That would be why it's dark outside, sweetheart."  
  
She punched him playfully. "You should all be ashamed of yourselves, letting me go on this long. Bed, everyone, now!"  
  
"Feeling better enough to go back into Mom mode." Peter muttered as they headed for the stairs. A cushion from the window seat hit him in the back of the head.  
  
"I heard that, Pettigrew."  
  
A.N.—First of all, NO Sirius having ADD cracks. The poor darling's sensitive.  
  
Hmm...I think Celina's taking over this fic…she wasn't even in this chapter and she's the most talked-about character...ah, well, she's one of the best I've come up with in quite some time, and apparently not even I can control her.  
  
More soon, I hope. I also have another chapter of my Legolas story written, but I still have to type it...maybe I'll squeeze some work in when I'm supposed to be doing my English homework, eh? (evil grin) 


	9. Chapter Nine! I'm baaaaaaaaack!

Author's Note: Well, well...when one of your reviewers threatens to bite you, it's time to update. (laughs)  
  
Ever been in a situation where you have a strong beginning, and a clear end in sight, but no freakin' idea what should go in the middle? That's kind of what happened to this story...and, my creative mind being what it is, I've spent the past few months wandering back and forth between five or six other stories-two of them HP stories that I should start posting soon- before I finally decided I owed it to myself and to my readers to keep going with this. Then when I finally sat down to do it the other night, my computer decided to freeze mid-paragraph, losing me a good bit of work and utterly killing the mood...so now I'm smart and save every five minutes or so.  
  
Soooo, anyway, I finally got the time, the inclination, and the cooperation from my computer to keep working on this...and my New Year's resolution is going to be to not slack off so much on my writing. So, here we go:  
  
Chapter Nine  
  
Weeks passed. Voldemort continued to terrorize the magic world, but seemed unable to touch Hogwarts. Rumor was that he was too afraid of Dumbledore to go near the school. The Daily Prophet and the Ministry always downplayed the seriousness of his actions, trying to avoid panic, but many people weren't fooled. For the Marauders, getting information was easy; they took turns sneaking into Hogsmeade at night under James's Invisibility Cloak, and an hour or two listening to conversations in the Three Broomsticks gave them all kinds of news. A lot of it was probably just gossip, but they took note of everything they heard.  
  
Sirius and Alexandra's relationship was getting more serious. Physically, they hadn't gone any further than kissing, but they were doing an awful lot of that. They also noticed a change in the way they spent time together. In the beginning, they would talk for hours on end, about anything and everything. Now, they still had long conversations, but it was becoming more common for them to just sit or walk together in silence. Not saying or doing anything special, just being together.  
  
"That's supposed to be a good sign." Lily said when Ally described it to her. "It is?" "Mm-hm. It means you're really comfortable with each other. You don't need anything to fill your time together or keep you interested in each other." Ally smiled. "I guess that is a good sign. So-" she leaned forward, resting her chin on her hand, "if you know so much about relationships, when are you and James going to get together?" Lily straightened up and blushed slightly. "James? What do you mean?" "Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about, Lily Evans. You both stare at each other when you think no one's watching, when we're all together you two always end up sitting next to each other...and right now, you're blushing, which confirms all my suspicions, so there!" Lily glared at her friend-or tried to, anyway. In spite of herself, a smile was stealing across her face. "Well...he is cute. D'you really think he might like me?" "Very cute-next to Sirius, he's the best looking boy in school. And nice, and smart, and a great Quidditch player--And I know he likes you. Everyone does. He's just too shy to say anything." "Well, why don't you say something? Lily blushed even more, but before she could reply Professor McGonagall approached the corner of the Great Hall where the girls were talking.  
  
"Miss Evans, Miss Merlin, will you both come with me, please?" She said in her characteristically brisk manner.  
  
Ally and Lily exchanged glances, wondering if this had anything to do with the Marauders. They'd been called on several times to keep the boys out of trouble by verifying alibis and such. But as far as they knew, none of them had broken any rules lately...  
  
They followed McGonagall to Dumbledore's office. James, Remus, and Sirius were there, but so were several other students. Ally recognized a few; Arabella Figg and Mundungus Fletcher, both Hufflepuffs, and Frank Longbottom, a Gryffindor. There were a few others she didn't know, mostly seventh-years, but a few sixth-years like her. Peter was not among the assembled students, and it was strange to see the other Marauders without him.  
  
Dumbledore asked them all to sit down, looking unusually serious. "The decision to call you all here has not been an easy one, but I believe it is necessary. It's becoming obvious that in order to defeat Lord Voldemort, we must use every asset we can-and I believe that includes your talents and intelligence. For some time now, Professor Dumbledore, myself, and others have been forming an alliance of wizards called the Order of the Phoenix, dedicated to defeating Voldemort at any cost. You have all been called here because you stand out among your fellow students, in terms of both talent and character. We offer you the chance to begin special training, and, when you are older, to become members of the Order of the Phoenix."  
  
"You will all be sworn to secrecy, whether you choose to join the Order or not." Professor McGonagall told them. "No one, not even your families, can know about this."  
  
Alexandra had already made her decision. Perhaps it was a foolish one, but the chance to have a hand in Voldemort's defeat was a chance she could not simply pass up. She looked around at her friends. Sirius and James looked like they had already decided as well...this was the kind of opportunity that either of them would jump at. Lily and Remus seemed to be giving the matter more careful thought, but then they both looked up and nodded slightly.  
  
Most of the students assembled that day chose to be part of the Order of the Phoenix, and those who did not swore to never reveal what they had been told. For the rest of the year, Alexandra and her friends attended special classes at on the weekends, undergoing intense training in combat and self- defense. It was hard to conceal these activities from Peter, as well as from Celina, who had taken to tagging along with the Marauders whenever she could, but they managed.  
  
........................................................................  
  
Time: Present  
  
Remus settled into life at the Merlins' house fairly easily, but there was a noticeable strain on his and Ally's friendship. They never talked about the past-they never talked about Sirius-but the silence was like a wall between them. The pain of old wounds was still there, whether they acknowledged its presence or not.  
  
With Celina, things were difficult for a different reason. The attraction between her and Remus was as strong as ever, if not stronger. Remus knew how easy it would be to let himself fall in love with her, but he had even less hope for the success of a relationship between them than he had in the past.  
  
"She's crazy about you, you know." Alexandra said one day when she and Remus were alone in the living room. "And don't ask who I'm talking about, because you know damn well."  
  
Remus blushed slightly and stared into his teacup. "I'd really rather not talk about this right now." "You say that every time I bring it up." He smiled slightly. "Ally, I know you'd like to see Celina and I as a happy couple, but have you thought that maybe we're both better off alone?" "Rem, I've become an authority on being alone, and no one's better off that way. Why are you so convinced that you two couldn't be happy together?" He looked up, meeting her eyes with his somber gray ones. "Knowing and accepting that your friend is a werewolf is one thing. Having a werewolf as a lover...living with one...is a totally different matter." She smiled slightly. "If anyone can handle something like that, it's Cel." Remus shook his head, smiling bitterly. "I don't know if even she could live with me, Ally.I have a hard enough time living with myself." Before she could say anything else, he had stood and left the room.  
  
........................................................................  
  
A.N.: (cuddles the living daylights out of Remus, then cuddles Sirius too so he won't feel left out) 


	10. Chapter Teeeeeen!

A.N: Ask and you shall receive!! Well, actually, ask, wait around for a while, ask again, wait some more and THEN you shall receive!  
  
Oh, and one more thing-mad props must be given to my new best friend-even though it's a website-The Harry Potter Lexicon! (I had a link, but I can't figure out how to get it to display when I uploaded the document, so just...go do a search for it or something...) I swear, this site has EVERYTHING a fanfic writer needs-timelines, maps, encyclopedias of spells and characters-it's the best source of HP info I can imagine, short of J.K. Rowling personally helping me write this.  
  
Anyway, on the story...  
  
Chapter Ten  
  
Time: Past  
  
It seemed like the school year ended just as they were starting to settle into the routine of balancing their training, regular classes, and social lives. And, just as they had all been unusually anxious for to return to Hogwarts, they now found themselves unusually sorry to leave it.  
  
For one thing, finishing school and entering the wizarding world as "adults" would have been difficult enough for the Marauders and Lily without the dangerous times they were living in. For another, Alexandra was not exactly looking forward to a year at Hogwarts without any of them there. She'd made other friends since being drawn into their circle-being Sirius Black's girlfriend tended to improve one's popularity-but it wouldn't be the same without her best friends around. On the bright side, Ally's brother and everyone else's parents had, after weeks of pestering, agreed to let the whole group spend two weeks at Sirius's house in the middle of July.  
  
"You sure your parents are ready to be handling all of us?" Lily asked one evening. The group, including Celina, was sprawled out on several blankets by the lake, alternately studying for their exams and chatting, mostly about their plans for the summer.  
  
Sirius, who was currently engaged in a tickling fight with Ally, snorted. "Hey, my parents have been handling me for seventeen years, and they're still alive and mostly sane. You lot for two weeks shouldn't be a problem."  
  
"I still don't get why I can't come." Celina muttered darkly, her eyes fixed sullenly on her Transfiguration textbook.  
  
Ally glanced over at her while doing her best to pin Sirius's wrists to the blanket. "Because Nick said you couldn't?" Celina's only response was to scowl. "Look, love, it's fun to have you hanging out with us, but Nick doesn't want you away from home with a bunch of older kids for that long, even if those older kids are us."  
  
"And maybe you'd all rather not have me hanging out with you over the summer?"  
  
"Well..." Peter said. "Nothing personal, but.could you really blame us if that was the case?"  
  
Remus reached over and tousled her hair, smiling. "You're the coolest eleven year old any of us have ever met, Cel, but, well..."  
  
She poked him in the ribcage with a bony finger. "I'm still an eleven year old, right? No, I don't blame you-but that doesn't mean I have to like it."  
  
He gave her a brief hug, which left her blushing a little. "That's my girl."  
  
.................................  
  
For about a week and a half, the get-together at Sirius's was one of the best times of any of their lives. Then, about four days before they were planning to go home, Alexandra heard news from her brother that brought their fun to an abrupt end.  
  
.................................  
  
Celina hauled herself up the last few inches and settled herself on the largest branch of the oak, letting her skinny legs dangle as she looked up at the stars. She was trying to pick out constellations-first years at Hogwarts didn't take Astronomy, but Remus had taught her how to recognize some of them.  
  
Celina liked Remus. In fact, she thought she might like him better than anyone else she knew, even Ally. He treated her like a kid less often than anyone else, and even when he did, it always felt kind of nice instead of annoying. There was also something else, that she couldn't really make sense of-she had no idea what kind of dark secret someone like Remus would have to keep, but she got the impression that he knew what it was like to have to keep something about yourself hidden from other people, the way she did. She couldn't explain it, really, it was just a feeling she had-a feeling that they could understand things about each other that no one else could.  
  
Her thoughts were interrupted by a soft hissing. Looking down, she saw Seti, her snake friend-not "pet snake" like everyone called him, he had too much dignity to be anyone's pet-coiled around the bottom of the tree. He was hissing at her, and Celina could swear he sounded anxious. She couldn't hear him very well, but she tried to concentrate and understand what he was saying.  
  
"Danger...he is coming...I have heard him."  
  
Confused, she started climbing down, hissing back to him as she did so. "Who? Who's coming, Seti?"  
  
"Him...the other who's voice I can understand...I have heard him before but never so close. He is coming and he will hurt you...run!"  
  
"The other one who's..." It dawned on her as she dropped to the ground, and she stumbled backward with wide eyes. "Oh, God..."  
  
Celina was fast, but she didn't get more than five feet from the tree before ropes wrapped around her wrists and ankles from behind. She struggled wildly and screamed until one of them wrapped around her mouth. Then she heard several hushed voices chanting the word "Stupefy!" and then there was only blackness.  
  
.................................  
  
The rest of the group stood, all looking concerned, outside the room where Ally was talking to her brother, who had contacted her rather urgently via the fireplace in Sirius's kitchen. None of them knew what had happened, but they all had an uneasy feeling that whatever it was, it involved Celina.  
  
Finally, Ally walked out of the kitchen-stormed out would be a better term. She looked like she would be crying if she hadn't been so totally consumed with anger, and she was clutching her wand tightly in her hand.  
  
"Do all of you have your wands?" She said in a surprisingly calm voice. They all nodded. "Good-we should get going as soon as we can."  
  
"Ally-" Sirius interrupted. "Get going where?"  
  
"That's what we need to figure out-but we're going to figure it out, and when we do..."  
  
He stepped forward, taking her firmly by the shoulders. She was shaking "Sweetheart, you're not making sense-what happened?"  
  
"Celina-she's been kidnapped by Voldemort."  
  
A.N: This was going to be longer, but I realized that I really have no idea how the hell they're going to find out where Voldy took Cel...so the next chapter will come as soon as I figure that bit out!  
  
...Which will hopefully NOT be another month from now! 


	11. Elevenses!

A.N: Okay, this WOULD have been up within a month of the last chapter, I SWEAR. Really. But then I ran across this little stumbling block called Order of the Phoenix. And character backgroundy tidbits that make stuff I wrote earlier not fit with canon. (Excuse me for thinking Sirius should have had a HAPPY family life, JK...)  
  
So, I went back to rewrite here and there and make it fit. And, inevitably, I looked at the first chapters of this story, written in 2001, and, as I usually do, said "Oh my God, that writing is horribly adolescent and needs to be redone!"  
  
SO...Remembrance shall now, in addition to inching its way toward completion, be undergoing the Massive Re-Write of Doom, which my stories quite often never make it out of alive. But, since it IS summer, and I am still bursting with the Post-New-Book-Reading HP Fandom Madness.things should run along quite smoothly.  
  
Hang in there, gang. There's a massively fluffy lovers' reunion scene at the end of the tunnel, and I just know I can get us there...(I think I can, I think I can, I think I can...)  
  
Chapter Eleven  
  
About twenty minutes later, the Marauders, Lily, and Alexandra pulled up outside Ally's house in James's parents' car. (The drive would have taken longer than that, if Sirius hadn't been driving so far over the speed limit that, even under the circumstances, Remus and Lily yelled at him to slow down.) A group of Aurors was already there, interrogating the one Death Eater that Nick had been able to subdue before the rest got away with Celina. Nick looked up, surprised, as the teenagers entered.  
  
"Ally!...What are you all doing here?"  
  
"You think I was going to stay at James's after hearing about what happened?"  
  
"If I'd known you were going to come all the way out here-"  
  
"Nick, we want to help."  
  
"Let me handle this, Nick." A grizzled-looking Auror who they all recognized at once-Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody-stepped forward, looking Ally over with his mismatched, unsettling eyes. "Alexandra, is it?" His usual gruff tone was surprisingly gentle as he addressed her. "I know how you must be feeling right now, but the best thing you can do to help is just let us handle it and not get in the way."  
  
"But we want to help-" James started to object. Knowing he was about to say something about the Order of the Phoenix-Moody and Nick were both part of it-Lily stomped on his foot as discreetly as she could and then pulled him aside.  
  
"These other Aurors might not know about the Order!" she hissed at him. "And neither does Peter, remember?"  
  
"There's not much more to be done, girl..." Moody was saying to Alexandra. He gestured to a flask on the table, where the Death Eater was sitting, bound with magical ropes. "We gave him some Veritaserum, so we know where they're taking the little girl. All that's left to do is go get her, and that's too dangerous for any of you to be involved in."  
  
She nodded soberly. "All right...just...find her soon."  
  
"We will, don't worry." He patted her arm and started to walk past her, then leaned in and whispered quickly. "Stay here in case Nick needs some help handling him. That'll still be good practice for you all, but not too dangerous."  
  
As Moody and the other Aurors left, Sirius heard something behind him- something that sounded very much like an evil chuckle. Turning, he faced the captive Death Eater and was met with a stony, impassive expression...but not before he saw a sinister grin flitting across the man's face.  
  
"Um...Lily?" he asked. "You're the best of us at Potions-what are this git's odds of resisting the Veritaserum and lying to us?"  
  
Lily turned towards the Death Eater as well, frowning slightly. "Slim, but not unheard of...wizards have resisted Veritaserum before..."  
  
"Is there any way we could find out for sure?"  
  
"Well, we could give him another dose, but-"  
  
"An overdose of Veritaserum can be very dangerous." Nick finished. "What makes you think he might be lying, Sirius?"  
  
"Just now, when the Aurors left, our friend here was chuckling...I'd like to know what's so funny."  
  
Nick looked at the Death Eater carefully for a moment, thinking. "I think I'd like to know that, myself..." Reaching for the bottle of Veritaserum on the table, he uncorked it and stepped toward their captive.  
  
"Did you lie to Moody about where you and your companions were taking Celina?" he asked after forcing another dose down his throat.  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Where are they really taking her?"  
  
The Death Eater gave them directions to an abandoned house on the outskirts of a village to the north, which Remus scribbled down.  
  
"What about the directions you gave Moody?" he asked as he wrote. "Is there anything where they're headed?"  
  
A sinister smile crossed the Death Eater's face again. "Yes."  
  
Nick's brows furrowed, and a note of foreboding crept into his voice. "What?"  
  
The Death Eater told them.  
  
"Bloody Hell!" Sirius exclaimed. "We've got to stop them!"  
  
"Some of us should go after them while the rest go on ahead and see if we can find where they took Cel." James said. "That way-"  
  
"Hold it!" Nick interrupted. "You all have already gotten more involved in this than you should have." "But-"  
  
"No buts, Alexandra. Now listen-if you insist on trying to help, stay here and watch the Death Eater while I intercept Moody and the others. Once I send them in the right direction to find Cel, I'll come back to watch him until someone can come and take him into custody. After that, I want you all to go back to James's-his parents will be frantic when they realize you're all gone."  
  
The teenagers exchanged glances, already knowing what they were going to do. Ally sighed and nodded. "You're right...we'll let the adults take it from here."  
  
"Good girl." Nick said, squeezing her shoulder. "And don't worry-Cel's going to be alright."  
  
They waited for a few moments after he left, to be on the safe side.  
  
"Right." Ally said, waving her wand toward the Death Eater. "What should we do with him?"  
  
"Stun him, tie him up more thoroughly, and lock him in a closet somewhere?" James suggested.  
  
"Sounds good to me..."  
  
"Um...guys, should we really be doing this?" Peter asked. "Maybe we should just let the Aurors handle it..."  
  
Sirius turned to him, looking slightly impatient. "Wormtail, last year we all swore that if Voldemort wanted to get to Cel, he's have to get through all six of us, right?"  
  
"Right..."  
  
"Well, did you mean that promise or didn't you?"  
  
"I...you're right. I meant it."  
  
"Alright then. Let's go kick some dark wizard ass!"  
  
A.N: Okay, I have a firm grasp of what's going to happen next this time, so newness should be soon. But then, with my track record, maybe I shouldn't go saying things like that...  
  
Oh, and as for the end of OotP...no spoilers, don't worry!...ALL I'm going to say is...  
  
We'll SEE about THAT, JK!  
  
(huffs off in a cloud of self-righteous fangirlishness) 


	12. Chapter Twelve! Already?

A.N: Ta-da! I think this might be the fastest I've EVER updated this story...and I only stopped when I did because I reached a good place to start a new chapter tomorrow...ooooooh, being massively unblocked makes me such a happy fanfic writer...  
  
Chapter 12  
  
It was a large, old house they'd brought her to. A house that smelled like death. She'd heard two of the Death Eaters talking about it-one of them, they called him Lestrange, had lived here as a child, but he, his brother, and his wife had killed the rest of the family and offered the house to Voldemort as a base of operations. It was Lestrange's parents' bedroom they were keeping Celina in. She crouched on the floor, chained to a post of the enormous canopy bed, tense and waiting.  
  
Finally, the door opened and three figures walked in.  
  
The Death Eaters had removed the masks they'd been wearing when they brought her here. On the right of the trio, Celina instantly recognized Lucius Malfoy, who'd been in Slytherin before he graduated from Hogwarts...Even though Ally and the others had hated him, Celina had always had a bit of a crush on him. Damn. On the left was a woman who looked several years older than Lucius, and seemed oddly familiar although Celina was sure she'd never seen her before. There was something unsettling about her dark beauty and regal demeanor.  
  
And in the center...who else could that be but the Dark Lord himself? Celina stared straight into his snakelike eyes, frozen with terror, burning with rage. She hadn't known it was possible to be so torn between two emotions.  
  
He looked down at her for a moment, his expression unreadable, then waved his wand almost idly at the chains around her wrists, which disappeared. Instantly, she launched herself at him, striking out at him with her fists, her legs, her entire body, sharp nails clawing at his eyes as she struggled, in her blind fury, to simply hurt him as much as she possibly could.  
  
The woman tried to drag her off; Celina bit her hand and drew blood, never letting up in her assault on Voldemort. With a shriek of incredulous anger, the woman struck her across the face, hard. At the same time, Lucius managed to pull her away from Voldemort. He threw her against the footboard of the bed, and the woman started toward her, wand raised, but Voldemort grabbed her wrist. It was only then that all of them realized-the entire time, he had been laughing.  
  
"Good, good!" he said in his cold voice. "I expected nothing less from you. Now, if you've gotten that out of your system, we have much to discuss."  
  
"Discuss?" Celina steadied herself against the footboard, her eyes narrowed to slits. "What could I possibly have to discuss with you?"  
  
"The benefits of realizing that it is far smarter to be my ally than my enemy, Celina."  
  
"Your ally?"  
  
"I don't want to have to kill you-it would be a shameful waste of your potential-but if you become a threat to me, which you well may, I will have no other choice. But I would much prefer that you join me, rather than oppose me."  
  
"Why in God's name would I join you?"  
  
"Because I can set you on a path to greatness that your noble-minded friends never can. Because I can teach you to follow in the steps of Salazar Slytherin himself, which is something I know you want, even if you yourself don't know you want it. And because you are worthy of the things I can teach and show you, as few are, even among my Death Eaters." (The dark woman's eyes narrowed at that last remark.) "Now, I ask you this, Celina Merlin-why should you not join me?"  
  
"You honestly need me to tell you that?" she asked, incredulously. "Or have you forgotten that you killed my father?!"  
  
"What of it? I killed my father. I imagine I shall kill a great many more fathers before I am done."  
  
"And that's supposed to make me want to join you?"  
  
"Child, child...still bound by the mental chains of morality? That's a setback we're going to have to overcome."  
  
"Go to Hell."  
  
The woman stepped forward again, dark eyes blazing. "You dare speak to the Dark Lord that way, you little-"  
  
"Bella..." Voldemort said softly, a tone of warning in her voice.  
  
"You should just let me kill her for you, Lord. She won't join us."  
  
"We knew that before we took her, my Lord." Lucius agreed. "She's too brainwashed with devotion to your enemies."  
  
"Her devotion to those who oppose me runs deep, it is true. Particularly for her sister and the werewolf. But there is something in her that runs deeper, and in time she will realize it-I simply aim to make her realize it faster."  
  
Celina's eyes narrowed again. "What are you talking about?"  
  
"The connection between us, my young friend. Surely you're not totally unaware of it..."  
  
"You mean...you mean my being in Slytherin and a Parselmouth?"  
  
"In part, yes...but our connection goes far beyond that."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
He told her.  
  
"No..." she whispered, staring at him in mingled shock and defiance. Her voice rose to a scream. "No! That's not true!"  
  
"Oh, I assure you, child, it's true. I'm not surprised that your father never told you...your mother might have, had she lived, but I'm sure Nicodemus wanted nothing more than to forget it."  
  
"No...you're lying...no!!"  
  
She charged at him again, but he batted her away easily this time. "Tell yourself that if you wish, for now. In time, the truth will sink in...and we'll see what becomes of your righteous anger then."  
  
Turning, he swept out of the room, giving instructions to the woman as he passed her. "Chain her again, and leave Nagini to guard her. Let's leave her alone for a while to...consider things."  
  
A.N. "Celina-I am your father!!" (dun dun DUN!!!)  
  
Eh...no.  
  
(grabs Umbridge's Pen O' Detention From Hell and makes herself write "I must not copy George Lucas." fifty times)  
  
But seriously, there is a connection between them, which will be developed and revealed in later fics, but that's not it.  
  
Voldemort can't be Celina's father.  
  
...He has to be Harry's. (ducks projectiles) XD  
  
Oh, and I was wondering when someone was going to ask about Isadora...no, she's not Sirius and Alexandra's daughter, sorry. You'll find out about her...I could just tell you now, but I don't feel like it. ^_^  
  
Whoa, smilies...I am hyper. Quite. Writing evil! makes me hyper, apparently...  
  
Ooh, and Bellatrix is SO much fun to write...I may go a little overboard with her in the next chapter. (I have SUCH a weakness for cool female villains...) 


	13. Thirteen! This fic is now a teenager! Mw...

A.N: This would have been done sooner, but other fandoms have been hijacking me and making me write for them, so I had to have Bella go scare them into temporary submission so I could finish this chapter.  
  
Chapter 13  
  
"So this is it?" Peter asked as they crouched behind a small knoll, peering around it at the large house.  
  
James nodded. "This is it. So...uh...how should we do this? Split up in pairs to go look for her?"  
  
"That'll be riskier..." Lily pointed out. "Assuming that there are Death Eaters and even Voldemort himself in there, we stand a much better chance facing them together."  
  
"But our best bet here is to find Cel and get out, fast." Remus reminded her. "And that will be easier if we split up."  
  
"Let's go in groups, then." Sirius suggested. "James, Lily, and Remus, go in through the back door, Ally and Peter, come with me through the front. Search the house as fast as you can and do your best not to be detected." ...........................  
  
"Okay, anyone else think that was a little too easy?" Sirius asked as he and Peter tied up the guards they had Stunned. "I mean, Ally just opened that door with the simplest unlocking spell there is."  
  
"Maybe Voldemort's just...not expecting company?" Peter said hopefully.  
  
"Does Voldemort seem like the sort to not be expecting company?"  
  
"Just hush up and come on, you two." Ally whispered, as she slipped into the house.  
  
For a few minutes, they hurried through the darkened halls without encountering anyone. Then, as Sirius turned a corner and faced a staircase leading to the second floor, he froze. Three figures were gathered on the staircase, one leaning casually against the banister, another sitting on the bottom step, and the third, a woman, standing in the middle of the staircase. He, Ally, and Peter gripped their wands and moved closer together, not sure if they should fight or run. Then the woman took a step back in what seemed like surprise, and spoke.  
  
"Sirius?"  
  
Sirius's eyes widened, then narrowed, as he recognized the voice. "Bellatrix?"  
  
She came forward, a shaft of moonlight falling on her from a window, illuminating her beautiful, cruel features. She smiled, and her smile was as chilling as everything else about her. "Well, if it isn't my little baby cousin Sirius, all grown up. Aren't you a bit old to be playing hero, deary?"  
  
He flashed a crooked grin at her. "Aren't you a bit old to be playing Wicked Witch, Bella?"  
  
The man leaning against the staircase came forward now as well, speaking in a drawling voice. "That's right, Bella, you and Narcissa both have the misfortune of being related to Black, don't you?"  
  
"Malfoy?" Sirius adopted a perfect expression of shock. "What an unexpected surprise to find you here! Did you bring Snape along, too, or is he too pathetic for even Voldemort to want around?"  
  
Malfoy chuckled sinisterly. "It's going to be a pleasure shutting that smart mouth of yours once and for all, Black."  
  
During the exchange, Alexandra and Peter had come forward, flanking Sirius, and the third Death Eater rose to join Lucius and Bellatrix. For a moment they all stood there, wands at the ready. Then, at almost exactly the same moment, Sirius and Lucius lifted their wands and yelled curses at each other.  
  
And, like a switch had been thrown, the battle began.  
  
...........................  
  
Celina had been brooding for almost an hour without pause now. She was good at brooding to begin with, and this situation was giving her ample opportunity to hone her skill. She hadn't even looked away from this one particular floorboard for about ten minutes. Now, as her guard was switched again, and she heard the usual brief exchange of words as one Death Eater entered the room and another left, she heard a familiar voice, and looked up.  
  
"Snape? What the hell are you doing here?"  
  
For just a moment, the dark-haired young man looked faintly guilty. Then his face hardened. "Where else should I be, but in the service of the Dark Lord?"  
  
Celina rolled her eyes. "Oh, bloody hell, don't tell me you're a Death Eater too...Malfoy didn't surprise me, but I thought you at least would be too smart for it."  
  
He sneered. "Funny, I was going to say the same thing about you and this foolish opposition. You were always smarter than your sister and those Gryffindor idiots--"  
  
"Those 'Gryffindor idiots' are my friends. Don't make me regret all those times I tried to stop them bothering you in school." Snape waved his wand at her vaguely as he settled into the chair by the door. "Don't make me shut you up in an unpleasant way, Merlin." ....................................................................... ................  
  
The second group, huddled under James's Invisibility Cloak, had expected to have an easy time avoiding any Death Eaters in the house. What they hadn't expected was to not see any Death Eaters to avoid.  
  
"Damn, where are they all?" James hissed as they made their way to the second floor.  
  
"The Aurors..." Lily reminded him, a grim look on her face.  
  
"...Oh, right, I guess there aren't many Death Eaters left here...cripes, I hope the Aurors'll be alright..."  
  
"Shh!" Remus whispered urgently. "I think I heard voices from that room down the hall..."  
  
....................................................................... ......................  
  
Elsewhere, a group of eight Aurors, led by Mad-Eye Moody, Apparated outside another old, abandoned house.  
  
"Alright, we're doing this by the book, but stay ready for any surprises they might have for us." Moody muttered in his gruff voice. "And remember-"  
  
"Constant vigilance!"  
  
The battle-hardened Auror's catchphrase had been spoken loudly, mockingly, by the figure that had just thrown open the door to the house. Moonlight glinted off of silver masks as three Death Eaters emerged.  
  
"We're glad you're finally here." the one who had spoken continued. "We couldn't start the party until the guests of honor arrived!" As he spoke, more Death Eaters came into view-from behind the house, from within the grove of trees that surrounded it, some seeming to materialize from the very ground itself. Seven-ten-fourteen-Moody stopped bothering to count when one thing became clear-the Aurors were very, very outnumbered. And, strangely enough, he smiled as that fact registered. Moody had no time to waste on emotions like panic or outrage-not when there were Death Eaters to be dealt with.  
  
This was going to be a battle to remember.  
  
A.N.: (cackles) 


	14. Chapter Fourteen!

A.N: Finally set aside some time to work on this. College is sort of like Hogwarts...except for, y'know, the whole magic thing...  
  
Oh, and since most of the people who read my stuff read this story, I'm gonna announce it here...for quite awhile ago, I sort of stopped using the nickname Catalina on the Internet, but I was reluctant to change it here, because I thought it would confuse people.but, in light of this whole people getting numbers put on their name so that nobody has the same name anymore thing, I'm going to go ahead and change it to Jezrana, which is the name I use almost everywhere now. Savvy?  
  
Sorry if it throws anyone off at first...  
  
Chapter 14  
  
Peter crouched behind a sofa in a neglected parlor, breathing heavily, two thoughts running through his mind over and over. Thoughts that had become apparent to him within the first minute of the battle.  
  
One-he was completely and totally out of his league here.  
  
Two-Sirius and Alexandra were not.  
  
He'd watched them in disbelief, and then in amazement, and then with vague feelings of betrayal. They moved and dodged and reacted and adjusted like seasoned duelists. They shouted curses and counter- curses Peter had never even heard of. It was like they had done this before-or had somehow been prepared for it in ways he had not been.  
  
Where had they learned all of this?  
  
And why hadn't he learned it with them?  
  
"Now, where have you run off to?" Peter froze as he heard Bellatrix enter the room. "No fair hiding...come out and play..."  
  
All Peter wanted was to get out of here. He could transform! In this old house, she'd never guess that the rat scurrying across the floor was him-but his friends, he couldn't turn his back on his friends- could he?  
  
"Answer me something, little Peter." The woman's tone was sweet, conversational. Her steps were drawing closer to the sofa, but she seemed to be taking her time. "Why is it that my dear cousin and his precious Alexandra remain out in the halls fighting like Aurors, but Peter runs and hides? Didn't they teach you the same little tricks in that Order of yours?"  
  
"...Order? What-" Peter spoke before he could stop himself, then clapped a hand over his mouth, realizing he'd given away his position. But his frightened mind was still asking, What "order"?  
  
Bellatrix stopped short, and a tone of sinister delight crept into her voice. "Oh, is that it? Has little Peter not been a part of the Order's big, secret Junior League? Have Dumbledore and his friends not trusted him enough to-"  
  
Anger flared inside Peter, making him speak up again. "I don't know what you're talking about, but my friends don't keep secrets from me!"  
  
She laughed. "Ask them, then! See if they deny it. Oh, and next time you're trying to hide from someone..." Suddenly, she was around the sofa, staring triumphantly down at him, "it might be a good idea not to talk-"  
  
"Stupefy!"  
  
While not as resourceful as any of the others, Peter had his moments. Especially when it came to surprise attacks.  
  
....................................  
  
"Snape, c'mon. Really. I'm bored just sitting here and I want to know! Why?"  
  
"You're a Slytherin and you have to ask me that? Only fools turn away from power when it's offered them."  
  
"There's ways of gaining power that don't involve killing people, you know."  
  
Snape snorted and shook his head. "I am not going to sit here and debate with an eleven year old."  
  
"I'm twelve now, thank you very much. And what else have you got to do?"  
  
He ignored her, but Celina wasn't giving up that easily. "Really, I mean it-why join up with someone whose idea of ambition involves so much...violence?"  
  
Snape's black eyes shot toward her, narrowed. "You want to know about violence? Talk to-to those 'friends' of yours." Something in both his face and the posture of his body seemed to tighten up, as if he'd come close to revealing things he wanted to stay locked down inside, and was on his guard to make sure nothing more slipped out.  
  
Celina raised an eyebrow. "Okay...look, anyone who knew you could guess you probably had a painful childhood...and yeah, they were jerks toward you at school. A lot...and I know you're not going to believe me saying this, but I think they're starting to be sorry for it now. Anyway, all that still doesn't have to add up to...this. I mean, my childhood hasn't exactly been sweetness and light, and-"  
  
"Don't pretend like you know what I've gone through, child." he hissed.  
  
She drew herself up, offended. "Don't pretend like you know what I've gone through! I mean, come on, man, both my parents are dead. My brother's afraid of me. I can talk to snakes. Would you like to hear all the lovely things I've been called for that? But do you see me joining a group that kills innocent people?"  
  
"There are no 'innocent people' in this world. The sooner you learn that-" he broke off. "Quiet."  
  
"I wasn't talking, you were-"  
  
"Quiet! I heard something-" Snape rose to his feet, drew his wand-but never had a chance to do anything with it, as three Stunners hit him in the chest.  
  
As Snape dropped, unconscious, James, Lily, and Remus threw off the Invisibility Cloak. Immediately, Remus rushed over to Celina, who jumped up and threw her arms as far around him as the chains would allow. He hugged her close with one arm, using his wand to unlock her chains with the other.  
  
"You alright?"  
  
Everything Voldemort had said came surging back to the surface of Celina's mind. No, Remus, she thought. I haven't been alright since the day I was born, and I'm less alright than ever now. "I'm-they didn't hurt me or anything."  
  
....................................  
  
"Well." Sirius prodded Malfoy hard in the ribcage with his foot, both to make sure he was unconscious and just for the sake of kicking him. "That was fun."  
  
Alexandra glanced up from where she was tying the third Death Eater's ankles to the banister of the staircase. They'd done the same to Malfoy and Bellatrix, to buy themselves more time after their unconscious enemies awoke. "Fun?...You do know you're crazy, don't you?"  
  
Peter said nothing. Inside, he seethed with questions, with accusations, but he couldn't bring himself to voice them. He didn't have it in him to confront his best friends-not yet, anyway.  
  
There was a noise at the top of the stairs, and all three whipped around, wands at the ready, then relaxed in relief as James, Lily, Remus, and Celina came down the stairs. Ally ran up to meet them, and Celina let her sister hug her for a good five seconds longer than usual before squirming away.  
  
"That Malfoy?" James asked, surveying the vanquished Death Eaters.  
  
Sirius nodded. "Yep."  
  
"Well, fancy that. We ran into Snape."  
  
"Pardon me while I reel in shock."  
  
"Sure, mate, but d'you mind reeling in shock while we get the bloody hell out of here?"  
  
"But of course..."  
  
They began moving back towards the front door, only to be halted by a cold voice.  
  
"Leaving before you've even paid your respects to the host? Dumbledore should have taught you all better manners."  
  
Sirius froze. "Shit."  
  
A.N.: Okay, I'm bound and determined to make the confrontation with Voldemort un-cheesy-and-cliché, so the next chapter might take awhile... 


	15. Mwahaha! Er, I mean, Chapter 15

A.N: Dun dun dun! Showdown with Voldy time!  
  
Chapter 15  
  
Steeling himself to stand firm when all he wanted was to run as fast and as far as he could, Sirius turned. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the others turn as well. Peter and Celina turned last, Peter because he'd never been as brave as his friends, Celina because she was the only one who knew what it was to stand face to face with the tall, dark form at the top of the stairs.  
  
None of them spoke. For perhaps the first time in their lives, Sirius and James were both robbed of all bravado. They simply stood, bodies screaming with fear but minds refusing to give into it.  
  
Voldemort's eyes swept over them, a cold smile playing about his thin mouth. "I feel I should extend my congratulations." He said in a musing tone, clearly enjoying their fear. "I didn't doubt you children would make some sort of foolish rescue attempt, but I never imagined you would get this far." He gestured to the three unconscious Death Eaters. "I certainly didn't expect you to subdue Malfoy and the Lestranges."  
  
"We're full of surprises." James managed to get out, although his attempt at a cocky smirk fell flat.  
  
"So I see, James." The Dark Lord turned his full attention on James, his smile widening as the young man struggled not to shrink under his cold glare. "But don't make the mistake of thinking that any of you stand a chance against me."  
  
Taking advantage of the fact that Voldemort's attention was fixed on James, Lily, Sirius, and Remus exchanged barely perceivable glances, one thought running through all their minds. The only way they stood a ghost of a chance here was to hit him with everything they had and hope he didn't see it coming. Hands tightened around wands as Voldemort continued speaking.  
  
"I could kill you all now, easily. I could also offer you all the chance to join me, but I know you would all refuse me outright-at least, most of you would." His eyes wandered over each of them in turn as he said this. None of them was singled out, but each could not help but wonder-were his words true? Were there any among them who would ever consider joining him? Surely not...  
  
"Instead," Voldemort continued, "I give you one chance, and one chance only. Leave. Now."  
  
The only response any of them made was to step closer to Celina, forming a tight circle around her. Peter cast one despairing glance toward the door, but stood with the rest of them, trying not to shake.  
  
Voldemort's smile twisted into an expression of disdaining pity. "So be it." He surveyed them for a long moment like a predator toying with his prey, trying to decide which to feast on first. Then, with snakelike speed, his wand came up, pointing at Alexandra. "Crucio."  
  
Ally, who tried to dodge, was not fast enough. Sirius, who threw himself in front of her, was. He doubled over and cried out, paralyzed with pain. Voldemort kept his wand and attention focused on his victim, prolonged and reveling in the pain he inflicted. And that was where he made the mistake they'd been hoping for.  
  
The instant they recovered from the shock of seeing Sirius hit with the curse, James, Lily, Remus, Peter, Alexandra, and Celina, who had picked up Bellatrix's wand while no one watching, attacked, all using the most useful spell they could call to mind. Lily successfully disarmed the Dark Lord, while Remus and Ally both used Conjuctivus Curses which, their strength combined, temporarily blinded him, Celina set his robes on fire, and Peter used a Stunning Spell that, against such a powerful enemy, only caused him to stumble. But it was James's blasting spell that, by either sheer luck or disgustingly good aim, hit a crack running through the ceiling above Voldemort and caused it to completely collapse on top of him.  
  
"Bloody hell." he said weakly as the dust settled. "I did that?"  
  
"Is he...did you kill him?" Ally stammered.  
  
"If he didn't, I'm not waiting around to find out." Sirius struggled to his feet, speaking through clenched teeth. Ally rushed to his side, and he slipped an arm around her shoulders. "Let's get the hell out of here."  
  
Since neither Ally or Cel could Apparate, they'd kept using James's parents' car, leaving it far enough away that they could approach the house silently on foot. They abandoned any attempt at stealth now, running back to the car as fast as they could and driving back to the Merlin house so fast it had to be some kind of miracle they didn't have some sort of accident.  
  
Stumbling into the parlor, they surprised-and were surprised by-Nick, Alastor Moody...and less than half of the Auror squad that had been there earlier. Almost all of them seemed wounded to varying degrees, including Nick, who didn't let this stop him from pulling both Celina and Alexandra into a tight embrace.  
  
Still holding them, he looked up, his eyes finding Sirius and James over Ally's shoulder.  
  
"As soon as I finish being out of my mind with relief, you lot have some serious explaining to do."  
  
A.N.: Been focusing on getting to this point so much that I'm not sure where to go after it...I have ideas, but they're just kind of scattered around in my brain...So! Stay tuned, and I'll try not to let it go too long without an update. 


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